Junior School Arts Week 2021

At the end of the semester, the Junior School students at the Aga Khan Academy Mombasa celebrated Arts Week, an annual celebration in which students showcase their visual arts, music, drama and dance talents. This year’s Arts Week was particularly special as all JS students created an art piece and they all performed on stage together.

Instead of the students honing in on their talents during a week, the students worked on their art pieces and performances during the semester and performed it altogether on  December 1. The musical pieces were selected at the beginning of the academic year in August and training of songs began in September after the kids mastered the song melodies. Each class had their own songs, with the first five minutes of each music class dedicated to practicing their concert songs. In addition, the Student Representative Council Expression Representatives Niella Cheruiyot and Ali Gulhamhussein, both Grade five students, worked with the Academy’s Art Department to coordinate the performances.

The final performance for Arts Week was the first time parents and family members were allowed on campus for an event since the Academy reopened. Junior School Principal Annia Dear said this event brought a lively spark to the campus as parents, family members, students and staff were able to enjoy and engage in the performances together.

“We thoroughly enjoyed being physically together again to celebrate our first big event for Arts Week,” Annia said. “It was truly a wonderful event and we are already looking ahead to planning our performances for the next academic year.”

Grade 2 student Azia Fazal, whose class performed Sparkly by Teresa Jennings for Arts Week, also said she had fun at the event as a participant and an audience member.

“Art encourages us to develop our skills and to relax our mind,” Azia said. “I enjoyed seeing the different categories of art and watching other students singing and dancing.”